So, I get a lot of people asking me questions about what I do for a living. When I respond with the answer, I am a Search Engine Optimizer, people get a hazy look on their face and usually say something like…”Oh that’s nice, sounds hard!” So, I figured that I would write about it, and give people a better idea.

Plainly stated, I am an internet marketer. I advertise and promote things using the internet. I started to study this in college as part of my Business Management degree, and then began to read books, blogs, and anything else I could find on the subject. So, my specific services are as followed… Continue Reading

March 8, 2010

Dealing with the topic of wolves and their impact on our environment is an emotional issue. The emotions run the gamut from admiration and love to downright fear and hatred for these embattled animals. There are few who occupy the area in between these two stances. I admittedly am one of those who view wolves as the beautiful and often misunderstood victims of misinformed humans.

In the past two weeks, I have noticed there have been several articles in the Mini-Cassia edition of the Times-News which address the wolf issue. The concerns range all the way from residents of Sun Valley, who by their very presence, have driven elk herds away from their habitat which surrounds the region – one of the definitions we use when describing predators – to the Fish and Game people investigating the possible poaching of a wolf after the legal hunting season has ended.

I find it extremely ironic that Sun Valley’s mayor is concerned about keeping the Sun Valley neighborhood free of predators. He is one of those who has invaded an area formerly occupied by other creatures, driving them from their source of food and shelter, and are themselves predators, by the very definition of the word. The mayor is concerned that wolves will follow their prey, i.e., the elk which have come into the human habitat to find food which disappeared when humans invaded the area formerly frequented by these displaced animals. And the beat goes on, and has since recorded time.

The scary part about all of this is that wolves themselves are only a small part of the food chain, and if hunted to extinction (again,) will be supplanted by the next phalanx of predators, the mesopredators – coyotes, for one – and the resulting slaughter of livestock and wild life could become even more ugly. As the physicists say, “Nature abhors a vacuum.”

Actually, wolves have been the “bad guys” since the beginning of time. Mythology and legends tell stories of horrendous predations by these fanged beasts. In 17^th Century Germany, there was real concern that children who wandered into forested areas could become the victims of werewolves, a scary prospect in anyone’s time. And perhaps, it was this fear of wild predatory animals which prompted the Brothers Grimm to tell their apocryphal story of the big bad wolf who preyed upon a little girl wearing a red hood and her bedridden grandmother, who like the present-day wolf was put in the delisted category   because of her advanced age. Actually, I always thought the wolf’s real target was not Little Red but the enticing basket of goodies which she carried. Wolves, like dogs, have an occasional bout with the sweet tooth.

Now, in our area, we have sexual predators, gang-bangers, bullies, inattentive drivers and some unattended dogs which might threaten our well being. Suffice it to say that I have registered a few comments about wolves and how we view them. They rank high in concern, but are actually surpassed in kill numbers by coyotes, bears, wild cats and yes, packs of dogs. (I’ll deal with dogs in another reflection.)

For now, we can read our story books and feel relatively safe. As far as we know, there have been no wolf sightings in Burley.

Sarah M. Blasius

Now picture this, you open up your wardrobe to find an amazing world that is full of magic and adventure!!! Well this fantasy is closer then you think…but probably not in your closet.

The first step to find this wonderful land of Narnia is to get in your vehicle and take a little drive to Almo. Now when you drive over that last hill, which i guess you could call the door to your wardrobe, it opens up to the magical place that I like to call City of Rocks! City of Rocks in an adventure all in itself! There are always more rocks to climb, more caves to explore, and more memories to make! Who would think that our own Cassia County would have its own Narnia!

So, the next time your cleaning those skeletons out of your closet and you decide to take a little trip to Narnia, head up to City of Rocks instead of the back of your closet !

p.s. you can add this to the list of  “Things to do in Burley”

-Kolby

Dedicated to Amanda Eggleston 

Check it out. There is a disparity in the number of women versus men driving Jeeps in the Burley area. I believe that it is granted that Burley is the bastion of the “Good Ol’ Boys,” a well-recognized description of any male-dominated domain, particularly in the Western United States. This concept applies to vehicles driven by Burley-based men.  “Muscle cars” abound along with the all-pervasive 8-cylinder pickup trucks, although I will have to admit that I have observed a growing number of females driving the above-mentioned models.

There is one vehicle which has escaped the intrusion of feminine dominance, and that is the Jeep – an iconic piece of military equipment – and even though women are an essential part of today’s military, very few personally identify with the Jeep. I did not consider joining the military because, as my Mother and a few school administrators have put it, I am an obstinate person – even described as “hard headed” by many who know me well. It was agreed by all concerned that I would not last a week in basic training. I don’t take orders well.

It is that very characteristic, however, that has inspired me to recently purchase a Jeep Wrangler Sport – with a Freedom top. My husband and I have both been, and still are Toyota owners. My husband spent 37 years in the military and has been well-ingrained with the values gained from that experience. One of those ingrained values is his love for Jeeps, and up until recently he drove a 2003 Jeep Wrangler – his “toy” as friends and family affectionately called it. But the new Toyota Tacoma and my Corolla were the transportation workhorses for the two of us – that is, until I spotted a silver and black Jeep Wrangler on display at a local car lot.

To put it simply, I was overcome with admiration for this vehicle. It was almost predictable that in the following week, the older Jeep and the Corolla became history, and were supplanted by my Jeep. I didn’t realize how iconoclastic this decision was until my husband began to receive reactions from (mostly male) friends and family. You can’t be serious! You’re not giving up your Jeep so that she can drive it! You’re kidding – it’s not her Jeep – it’s yours!

One of our best friends and neighbors is still holding out – he refuses to believe that any man in his right mind would let his wife possess a Jeep, much less drive it. But what can I say? He’s a coach!

It has been an epiphany for me – the men of Burley are a bunch of male chauvinists when it comes to women driving jeeps, especially when one of those women is a retired high school English teacher. My husband softens the blow by allowing me some deference – he never drives the Jeep without asking my permission. I love him for that!

I urge the female citizens of Burley to seriously consider following my example. Read the Jeep commercials in the magazines, and watch them on television. You will see that the builders of this liberating vehicle understand exactly what I am saying.

As one ad puts it, “I live. I ride. I am Jeep.” And I would add, “I am woman. I am free!”

Sarah M. Blasius

HELLO! It been forever since I’ve written a post. Partly because I’m lazy, but I would like to blame it on a little thing i like to call “The Devil Himself”. Now “The Devil Himself” is actually a computer virus called a Trojan Virus. And I can honestly say that I hate this virus with a serious passion. My computer had 180 viruses to be exact, I have no idea where they came from, but my parents think it has something to do with this music down-loader that I supposedly downloaded. because now we have to pay 20 bucks a month to some company in New York for music that I don’t even have. Something is missing here isn’t it? Because it says that I downloaded it from my e-mail, but the only time that I use my e-mail is when I write to my brother who is currently in Canada. Some things just don’t make sense on how they happen. But anyways I am alive if anyone was wondering

Negotiating a 4-Way stop intersection in Burley, Idaho, can be risky business. After too many instances of  barely escaping with my vehicle and my life intact  while trying to pass through the intersection of Highland and 16^th Streets, I began to observe driver behavior at this intersection in particular, and Burley in general. The problem which I have observed most often – averaging by count, four times out of five – is that the person who is suddenly propelling his or her vehicle through this intersection without any deference to drivers who have the right of way is – you guessed it – talking on a cell phone. And after further observation at other intersections controlled by stop lights, I have come to the conclusion that no one is truly safe driving in this town unless they have passed a course in defensive driving. Continue Reading

We are starting to build a pretty good team of contributors on Go Burley, the best place to get Burley, Idaho news. But, there is still so much room and so much that we can cover in our small town. I want to share with you a News site that I have been informed of in my dealings online. The site is called Parwich.org and covers the happenings in a small area for 500 people in Derbyshire, England.

This site is completely driven by local community members in order to have a source for free local news.  It is a way for individuals to give back to their community, and ultimately promote it to the rest of the world. Now, I know that we have a free weekly mailer in town that has a contributor section called the “Sound Off” but, that section doesn’t exactally do it’s part in promoting our area if you catch my drift. I am convinced that if GoBurley and future HyperLocal News sites in our Mini Cassia area become community driven, we will have the best news reporting in not only our area, but the entire state. In my opinon, news shouldn’t be a business model for profit as much as a group effort for a communty. It seems that the business model method is plagued by a hidden agenda in most cases. So, with this site, we have a very good opportunity to make a difference. With that in mind here is what I am looking for….

A Burley Area History Writer – I want to have a weekly section where an individual writes about the settlement of this area and what has happened since. This information is so important for our community to know and I have a feeling there are very few people who have been taught about it.

A Local Business Writer – I think there are some amazing businesses in our town. I would love to see owners interviewed and advice given about what has lead to success. Also, I think there should be some promotion of good deeds that our businessmen do. Another area is someone who would like to write about tips and struggles from their local business.

A Few Community Events Writers – Know I know there is a handful of people that don’t miss a library meeting, concert, church event, or anything else that happens in our area. It is time that your voice is heard and you have a place to write about your experiences here. Community Meeting attendances will triple if people only knew the cool stuff that is going on.

A Healthy Lifestyle Writer – This is more for me needing the information than anything else. I sit in front of a computer for up to 16 hours a day between my Local Search Marketing Company and a vast amount of other online projects. I need to heathly motivation and I am sure I am not alone. If you have a business that focuses on health, write for this blog and become known. I will probably use you!

There are more positions than this, but the above are a good start. I will be honest, there is no compensation with GoBurley.com other than knowing that you are making a difference, the plan is that a large amount of the ad dollars will be given to local schools since they are starting to help with the site, but I sure to hope to have some killer pizza parties for those who get involved on a regular basis.

I decided to start GoBurley because I knew it was the right thing to do. I have met a lot of people out there who have helped because of the same reason, and I know that we are only touching the tip of the iceberg. So, please contact me through email at goburley@gmail.com or the contact us link at the top of the page,  and let me know what you would be interested in contributing towards.

Thank you for your continued support,

Mike Ramsey

Okay so I was sitting in this meeting Sunday Night and all of the sudden I get this phone call. So I sneakily reached into my pocket without my parents noticing… and much to my surprise my good friend Leslie Fowler was calling me. So once the meeting was over I called her back, and she was all like ‘KOLBY!! LOOK AT THE MOON!!!’  and so i did! And it was nuts! There was a giant ring around the Moon! I don’t think I have ever seen this before. So I wanted to figure out what in the heck is going on up there to make this happen. So i went to my number one source of knowledge, my Dad and he says that the Indians said it meant that it was going to rain. But this wasn’t enough for me! I wanted to know more about it then just that. So I did a little research!

Ring around the moon!

So the ring that you see appears when light passes through 6-sided ice crystals that are way up high in the atmosphere.  The ice crystals come from high cirrus clouds around 20,000 feet.  The crystals in these clouds act just a sequence shirt does in light, reflecting the light in different directions and bending the light just like a camera lens does.

Moon Ring Weather Folklore :
Old folklore says that a ring around the moon signifies bad weather is coming, which in many cases can and will be true. Now the reason why we can be so sure is because the ice crystals that cover the halo signify high altitude, thin cirrus clouds that normally precede a warm front by one or two days. Typically, a warm front will be associated with a low pressure system which is commonly referred to as a storm. So be ready for some stanky weather this week! But hey at least now you can rely on signs from the moon for bad weather instead of your broken shoulder that hurts everytime the weather changes. I know from personal experience.

Australia Moon Corona (Non alcoholic)

Moon Bow yay!

Pillars

Now these ice crytals not only just form rings, but some times if conditions are right you just might be able to see different formations in the sky. Like a pillar of light extending from both the north and south ends of the moon, or you can see a moon rainbow which i have never ever heard of but i would definitley want to witness one of them for myself. And the last one which you probably won’t ever see unless you visit Australia is called Australia Moon Corona…hence the name.

Now don’t think that all of this makes sense to me…cause most of it doesn’t! But I owe all of my information to http://home.hiwaay.net/~krcool/Astro/moon/moonring/. So if you want to learn more then check this site out!

-Kolby Beck

We live on an awesome town, but more often than not I find myself  at my house, bored to death, wondering what I should do!  And I realized that I’m not alone in the world of boredom. So i decided to check out what there is to do in Burley that is fun! So check out some of  these ideas!

1. Go to a High School basketball game. Burley High School has some very good athletes this year, which makes for exciting games both from the girls and boys basketball teams.

2. Go bowling! But not just normally dressed… Find some sweet costumes, wigs, or grandparents clothing and get crazy at the bowling alley! (but don’t get kicked out)

3. Go skiing and or snowboarding up at Pomerelle. Day passes cost $35 and night passes cost $15. And if you really want to mix things up try skiing if you snowboard, and if you ski try snowboarding! You can get great rental deals at Idaho Water Sports.  And for even more fun, wear a crazy snow outfit!  Maybe something from the D.I. or from your basement.

4. Check out the local shops on Overland.  There are some really cool shops around that a lot of people don’t know about.  So go check them out!

5. Find out about local concerts and plays.  Like the up coming plays “Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat” and ”Issun Boshi”.

6. Walk around Walmart. Personal Favorite

7. Take up photography. You can find some amazing shots down by the river or up on the mountain. And then once your done, make a collage of the pictures on a wall somewhere.

8. Make a movie! My friends and I love doing this! It’s a fun way to get to know people and there are some hilarious memories that come from making movies!

9. Go to the movie theater! We have both the Century Cinema and the Burley theater. They both show great movies (perfect for a date or family night).

10. Hang with friends and play Techno Twister! All you need is some techno music and a twister pad. And make sure every move you make is a dance move! And if you want to make things difficult, find an old mattress and put the mat on top of it! It makes it harder to stay on the dot, especially when your dancing at the same time!

Well that’s about all I have right now! But come on back to GoBurley.com next Thursday for some new date ideas!

-Kolby Beck

so when i say dance shoes...these should come to mind

There are 3 types of guys at a school dance. Those that come wearing their dancing shoes ready to party, those that are to “cool” to dance and just stand there with their hands in their pockets, and then those that like to get “dirty” with the ladies.

For those of you that come with your dance shoes.. kudos to you! You know whats up! Not only are you having fun, but you are helping those around you have fun!

Ok…so about you fellows you don’t “know how” to dance. Whats there to know? Just move around or something, and by the way jumping up and down for 6 songs straight isn’t considered dancing. But yeah just go with the flow, and if you can’t find the flow ask someone who has their dancing shoes on and tag along with them.

Now dirty dancing has become a national sensation… and a national problem. Schools around the country are banning it for many reasons. One, it is totally disrespectful towards the female gender. It makes you treat girls like an object instead of a person. Two, it can lead to “other” things, and I’m not talking about a nice game of Uno either. And Three, there are those of us who don’t want to have that image burned onto the back of our retinas for days to come!

So, remember when you come to dances bring your dancing shoes and be ready to party! and if you start to “dirty” dance just be prepared to get kicked out (just a fair warning).
Your fellow bro…

Kolby Beck